Sunday, April 19, 2009

So let's back up 10+ years. Tony and I took a trip to Cali to visit Teresa and Rowdy... yes, way back then. Tony decided to run a half marathon one morning in Chino. We woke up irritatingly early, and Teresa and I, not having a clue of how long a half marathon would take, figured it would take 3 or 4 hours for him to finish. So... we went to Target, breakfast, and all that good stuff. We finally got back to the race site, and poor Tony had been finished for like an hour at least, probably more, and was just hanging out waiting for us to return. I think he even placed first in his division, and had no one to greet him at the finish line. This was an event that Teresa and I STILL feel bad about to this day. (Sorry Tony... we love you!)

Well... now it's our turn to run a half marathon. Next Sunday, Teresa, Ami, and I are running the half marathon in La Jolla. I'm excited to run along the coast, and enjoy the beauty of SoCal, not to mention reap the benefits of a race at sea level. With that being said, I have dedicated the last few Sundays training and going on my long run, upping it by a mile each subsequent week. With the race being next week, that meant today was my 12 mile day. Due to prior commitments and the fact that I had to make sure I had enough energy to last, I couldn't go first thing in the morning, and got a bit of a late start. Finally, at 1:00 I hit the road. The prior 10 and 11 mile weeks were challenging, but I still tackled it without feeling too wiped out. Today, however, was a different story. It probably didn't help that I had a personal training session and crossed in about a thousand balls for the kids to finish this morning, so my ankle was sore, and eventually my hip flexor was feeling it too in the first third of my run, and running with sunshine and warmth threw me off a little bit too. Luckily my mental toughness kicked in, cause there was no way I was going to let myself stop and walk at any point, and I completed my 12 miles, while shaving 13 seconds off my pace. Not too bad i guess. Next week will be the true test, and I'm hoping sea level will be my best friend as we are not allowed to run with headphones. Wish me, Teresa, and Ami good luck!

Ok, so I'm a bit behind and I'm sure everyone knows, I have a new niece. Eliza Grace Yeates, born Tuesday, April 14th, 2009. Congrats to my big bro Tony and his wife Melissa, not only for the new addition to their family, but for meeting the requirements for their AFLAC policy by the skin of their teeth. Isn't she a cutie?!!!

My Nieces & Nephews

My Favorite Sites

MY FAVORITE QUOTES

"There's no point to any of this. It's all just a... a random lottery of meaningless tragedy and a series of near escapes. So I take pleasure in the details. You know... a Quarter-Pounder with cheese, those are good, the sky about ten minutes before it starts to rain, the moment where your laughter become a cackle... and I, I sit back and I smoke my Camel Straights and I ride my own melt." - Reality Bites

"You'll see one day when you move out it just sort of happens one day and it's gone. You feel like you can never get it back. It's like you feel homesick for a place that doesn't even exist. Maybe it's like this rite of passage, you know. You won't ever have this feeling again until you create a new idea of home for yourself, you know, for your kids, for the family you start, it's like a cycle or something. I don't know, but I miss the idea of it, you know. Maybe that's all family really is. A group of people that miss the same imaginary place." - Garden State

"Nobody means what they say on Thanksgiving, Mom. You know that. That's what the day's supposed to be all about, right? Torture." - Home For The Holidays

"If you can't laugh at yourself, life's gonna seem a whole lot longer than you like." - Garden State